Daddy's Girl
by RachieAliette
Summary: It was the shock of his life, seeing her again after all these months. It wasn't just Carla's appearance, with her tear stained face void of all makeup, and her hair falling into the natural curls she normally made an effort to straighten. The greatest shock of all came with the realisation that in her arms Carla held a sleeping baby close against her.


Daddy's Girl - Chapter One

It was the shock of his life, seeing her again after all these months. It wasn't just Carla's appearance, with her tear stained face void of all makeup, and her hair falling into the natural curls she normally made an effort to straighten. The greatest shock of all came with the realisation that in her arms Carla held a sleeping baby close against her. 'Carla?' He asked with a whisper, questioning her presence before him. There was a time when the sight before him now, of Carla with a baby in her arms, had been everything he'd wanted. It was something he'd always thought he would never see. 'Nick.' Carla sighed, his name escaping her lips for what felt like the first time in forever. Briefly she closed her eyes, clearly biting back the tears which threatened to fall from her eyes upon seeing him again. 'Can we come in?' Carla asked, her voice so much softer than he ever remembered it being. His once beautiful fiancée sounded as broken and as lost as she looked.

Slowly Nick began to nod, stepping back from the doorway to allow his ex fiancée to enter his flat carrying her baby. A baby which could so easily have been his but at the same time could so easily be nothing to do with him at all. 'Listen, I'm not stopping.' Carla said, carefully letting the baby's bag fall from her shoulder to the floor. There was subtle difference between her words but there was a difference all the same. Had Nick not been so shocked upon seeing her he may well have noticed, but he didn't. Instead he softly closed the door, careful not to wake the sleeping baby, before moving over to where Carla stood. So many questions played upon Nick's lips but he remained silent, simply watching Carla who cradled her baby in her arms. As she stood before him now, Nick recalled those last few words he'd said to her. 'Look after yourself, Carla.' He'd said in that final moment before she'd left. It was clear she hadn't taken his advice.

Gazing down at her baby Carla slowly blinked a single tear from her eye which ran down her cheek as she looked up at Nick. She knew what she had to do. Composing herself Carla took a deep breath but despite having rehearsed her words over and over again in her mind they did not come easily. 'I'm only here to give you the baby and I'll be gone.' Carla said, her words tumbling out in a sudden rush which caught in the back of her throat. Stunned by Carla's admission, Nick lightly furrowed his brow in speechless confusion at her words which hung heavily in the air between them. 'Hang on, Carla.' Nick softly sighed, lightly running his hand through his hair. He had only just got his head around the fact that Carla was here, in his flat, with her baby. Now it seemed that she had already decided upon handing the baby over to him. A baby which might not even by his, yet that didn't seem to come into it as far as Carla was concerned.

Stepping ever so slightly closer to where Carla stood, Nick glanced down at the baby in her arms. Unaware of the situation around her the baby remained asleep, nestled in a blanket in her mother's arms. 'She's better off without me, Nick.' Carla said. 'She should be with you.' She added, her words spoken through silent tears. 'You don't even know that she's mine.' Nick said, almost inaudibly voicing the elephant in the room. For the first time since Carla had entered Nick's flat their eyes met before Carla broke away from Nick's gaze. He could see that she was fragile, but Nick knew that Carla wasn't so fragile that she would give her baby away to just anyone. Otherwise why had she come to him and not pursued adoption. 'She has to be.' Carla replied just as inaudibly, as she looked down at her sleeping baby. Even before Carla had spoken Nick had realised that somehow Carla had convinced herself with false hope that her baby was his.

There was a chance, of course, that Carla was right in her belief that the baby was Nick's. It was something which whilst he would not allow himself to believe it Nick couldn't simply dismiss it either. Slowly Nick reached his hand out to the baby, gently pushing the blanket a little away from her head. The tiny mop of jet black hair he was met with, however, only served to convince him that she had inherited this from being Robert's baby and not his. Regardless of her jet black hair she was a beautiful little girl, but he would've expected nothing less of Carla's daughter. 'Don't you want to hold her?' Carla softly asked, glancing up at Nick who gazed down at what may or may not have been his baby girl. Nick lightly shook his head, carefully removing his hand from the baby. 'She's settled with you.' He softly replied, distancing himself from the baby, her jet black her still playing upon his mind.

Unsure what to make of Nick's reluctance to hold the baby, Carla slowly nodded to herself. Maybe he simply didn't want to disturb the sleeping baby but Carla couldn't help but believe there was more to it. Stepping back a little from Carla, Nick looked up at her tear stained face. Without her usual makeup there was no denying the fact that she looked completely drained. Despite how much she had hurt him her tears were difficult for him to see. He had no doubt that they always would be with her. 'You look exhausted, Carla.' Nick softly said but Carla simply shook her head. 'I'm fine.' Carla replied dismissively. 'Where have I heard that one before, hm?' Nick softly smiled as Carla met his gaze, a smile slowly crossing her lips to meet his. 'Sit down.' Nick said, lightly indicating his head towards the sofa. 'Nick, I really should be going.' Carla began but Nick shook his head. 'We need to talk, Carla.' He said, gently cutting her off.

For a moment a silence fell between them before Carla lightly sighed to herself, knowing Nick was right. There was no easy way to put her thoughts into words but Carla knew that she had to make Nick understand her reasons for wanting to leave the baby with him. Reluctantly Carla headed towards the sofa and carefully sat into the corner. 'I'll make coffee.' Nick suggested as he watched Carla making herself more comfortable with the baby in her arms. Moving across to the kitchen area, Nick filled the kettle and flicked it on before resting his elbows upon the worktop while he waited. Watching Carla gazing down at the baby in her arms Nick still found it hard to believe that she was here with the baby at all. This was the baby that Carla had told him she was pregnant with when he'd visited her that day. This was the baby that she had then moved away from the street to protect from harm. Yet this was the baby who Carla now believed was better off without her, and as a result wanted to hand over to him.

The news of Carla's brutal attack had spread around the street almost as quickly as the news of her cheating on Nick had six weeks previously. Alone in her hospital bed Carla lay curled on her side, one hand gently placed against her tummy. Her head swam with thoughts which were not made any clearer by the headache she'd been left with following her attack. Every time she moved her whole body ached with bruises but nothing was broken. Nothing except for her heart, that was, but she only had herself to blame for that. 'Hey.' A familiar soft voice said, gently breaking into her thoughts. His was the last voice she'd expected to hear when the door had softly opened behind her. 'Nick?' Carla asked, carefully turning to face him as he pushed the door shut and walked towards her. 'This wasn't how I expected to spend our first Valentine's Day together, Carla.' Nick said, walking around the bed to sit in front of Carla who'd turned back to her side. 'No. Me neither, Nick.' Carla mumbled in reply.

Once engaged to be married the pair should've been spending Valentine's Day having fun together. Instead they simply looked at each other from barely a metre apart, neither of them really knowing what to say. It was the first time they'd found themselves alone together since that day, a few days after Carla's confession, when Nick had returned his keys to Carla's flat and she in turn had given him back her engagement ring. 'How are you?' Nick asked to break the silence, a genuine sense of sympathy coming through in his tone despite Carla's betrayal. However much she'd hurt him still he hated to see her so vulnerable, especially if the rumours that she'd been attacked were to be believed. 'I'll survive.' Carla replied with a dismissive shrug, her fingers picking at a loose thread at the edge of her pillow. For a moment silence returned between them, Carla's eyes downcast to her pillow while Nick's lightly studied the broken girl who lay battered and bruised before him. 'What happened, Carla?' He softly asked.

Carla lightly flickered her eyes towards Nick, her memory of the incident vague. Everything which had happened to her since leaving the casino that night and waking up in hospital the next morning was all a bit of a blur. There was one thing which had stayed with Carla, however, a particular voice which had screamed and shouted at her before she'd given in to the pain of their unprovoked attack and fallen unconscious on the street. 'Tracy.' Carla said, the only explanation she was able to give. Nick lightly frowned as Carla herself confirmed the gossip prevailing the street. Had this occurred when Tracy had first heard of Carla's night with Robert he could've understood. He himself, along with Aidan and Robert, had separated Tracy and Carla in the bistro that very day that Tracy had found out. Now, six weeks later, something didn't tie up, not in his mind at least. 'Can you blame her after what I did?' Carla asked, having noticed Nick's reaction. 'You didn't deserve to end up in here.' Nick softly replied with a gentle shake of his head.

Returning her eyes back to where her fingers still picked at her pillow, Carla lightly sighed to herself. 'I don't want your pity, Nick.' She said dismissively. As far as she was concerned she deserved everything she got. 'That's not why I'm here.' Nick softly said with a gentle sigh. He hadn't forgiven her, but ever since he'd heard that Carla had been found unconscious the news had softened his feelings towards her somewhat. He'd just needed to know for himself that she was okay, then they could each move on with their lives following their split in the wake of Carla's betrayal. 'Then why are you here?' Carla asked, glancing up at him. 'Because I still care about you, Carla.' Nick admitted, his words surprising himself almost as much as they surprised Carla. Briefly their gazes met before Carla looked away. She didn't deserve the kindness he showed her. She deserved his harsh reminder of the Valentine's Day which might've been had she not ruined everything.

Once again a slightly awkward silence fell back between them, neither of them knowing what to make of Nick's admission. Their silence this time was broken by Carla's own admission, her hand still gently placed against her tummy telling her she couldn't put this off any longer. 'Listen, Nick, I've got something to tell you.' She said, her words unintentionally cutting him like a knife. They were the same words that she'd said to him that morning when she'd confessed to having slept with Robert the night before. Nick lightly raised his eyebrows at Carla encouraging her to continue. Surely whatever she had to tell him now couldn't hurt him as much as her initial betrayal had. 'I'm pregnant.' Carla sighed, averting her gaze from Nick's as he took in her revelation. 'They said six to eight weeks.' Carla said in Nick's shocked silence, confirming all that he needed to know. He didn't need to be a mathematician to work out that if Carla was nearer eight weeks pregnant her baby was his, but if she was only six weeks it most likely wasn't.


End file.
